[Sussex] Windows XP SP2 firewall nightmare

[Steve Dobson]

Andrew

On Tue, Mar 30, 2004 at 12:12:29PM +0100, Andrew Guard wrote:
> I would be intresting in reading about this.
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Jon Fautley [mailto:jon at geekpeople.net]
> > Sent: 30 March 2004 12:08
> > To: LUG email list for the Sussex Counties
> > Subject: Re: [Sussex] Windows XP SP2 firewall nightmare
> > 
> > 
> > Andrew Guard wrote:
> > 
> > >Nope, it is made from Microsoft source code.
> > >
> > >Now what is worring me most is whitin section called Memory 
> > protection.
> > >That they software has problem but that is only because of 
> > CPU.  Now that
> > >new one on me, I hear Sun, Linux Kernals all blaming CPU's 
> > for securty
> > >problems all the time, NOT!
> > >  
> > >
> > Actually, they do :)
> > 
> > OpenBSD has made their latest kernel(s) VERY secure against buffer 
> > overflows/stack smashing/etc, but the underlying problem is 
> > with the CPU 
> > - a lot of them do not have a "no-execute" instruction, which 
> > means that 
> > if something bad does make it into the wrong memory space, then it'll 
> > get executed, unless it has the NoEx flag set.
> > 
> > .. at least that's how I understand it, but then, i'm not a 
> > coder ... :)
> > 
> > there was a discussion on Full-Disclosure about this topic a 
> > few weeks 
> > ago, if memory serves, it should be in the archives if you 
> > want to look.

If you want to read more then look into MMU design.  It is all to do
with how the CPU, MMU and kernel can work together.

Steve D.